I’m going to do a fun and healthy competition. See how many rows you can fill up and for each row you complete, you will be entered into a drawing for free T-Shirt from my website! Share this with your friends and up the challenge!
Form Corrections for these 2 common exercises
We've all done it, especially at the end of our workout when our muscles start getting tired or we get lazy with form. I’m not perfect either so this applies to me too!!
Here are two ways to ensure you are using proper form and help force yourself to be in the right position. If you use these tricks, it's almost hard to cheat! Let me know if there are specific exercises you need help with and I’ll try to do a video specifically for you!
Surviving the Holidays + Fun Workout Challenge!
Click image to download pdf!
Can you believe we're talking about the holidays? Thanksgiving, Halloween, Christmas and New Years are all going to be here before you know it! Here's my Holiday Survival Guide with lots of ideas for healthier holiday recipes and tips for staying on track and enjoying every minute. I've got you covered this holiday season!
Bonus, I included 8 different workouts to help get you moving, even as the weather gets colder. These are some of our newest programs and they are all so good! If you are looking for a new full program or just a few workouts to try out, press play and try them out. I would love to hear what you think of them, so if you try one out, send me your thoughts!
Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
Overnight oats are one of my favorite breakfasts for fall - and this recipe has all the best autumn flavors! Plus, it’s high in protein and fiber, so you stay full all morning! Bonus: it tastes like dessert, I’m here for that!
Let me know if you make this Apple Cinnamon Crumble Overnight Oats and what you think!
Ingredients
For overnight oats
¾ cup unsweetened almond milk
½ cup dry rolled oats
2 scoops vanilla protein powder (I use Shakeology)
1 small apple, chopped, divided use
2 tsp chia seeds
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For crumble
1 tbsp chopped pecans, unsalted
1 tbsp dry rolled oats
2 tsp almond flour
1 tsp coconut sugar
1 tsp extra-virgin organic coconut oil
½ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
To make overnight oats, combine almond milk, oats, protein powder, ½ apple, chia seeds, and extract in a medium bowl and mix well. Evenly divide the oat mixture between 2 jars; seal the jars and refrigerate overnight.
To make crumble, combine pecans, oats, almond flour, sugar, oil, and cinnamon in a small bowl; mix well.
In the morning, top each jar evenly with crumble and remaining apple pieces. Store refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 24 hours.
Bowflex and PowerTrain demo
I’ve been asked about the weights I use so much that I want to designate a post to it! These are not cheap, but in the long run, they are so cost effective!!! I spent about $340 AU on mine, which included the stand and 2 weights and was so worth it! I’ve never questioned this purchase once.
I’ve explained how it all works, but if you do the math of 5, 7, 12, 14, 17.5, 20, 22, 25, 30, 35, 40, 44 and 48 lbs weights, you’re getting ALL of that in this little set and the best party - ITR TRAVELS WELL! I know it’s bulky, but I put this in the trunk of my car and pack around it and when I’m on vacation, I CAN DO ANY PROGRAM!!! NO NEED TO GO TO THE HOTEL GYM OR SKIP A WORKOUT. Do you get me??? Cost savings, time savings, goals non-interrupted. You’re welcome :) Shop around, I think these are the best brands (same product just called different names in different countries) and watch for the shipping costs when you check out. They are heavy because they’re 48 lbs x 2, plus the stand, so you want a free shipping deal!
message me if you have questions! I love talking about weights and helping clients save!
My Story!
Wow, this was soooo hard to do, and even after I’ve shared it on You Tube, it took me a bit to share it here for all to see! I’m pretty raw here, I’ve shed a few tears and I’been open about it all, not just telling you the pretty stuff :) You might be able to relate to some of the things I was told, some of the eating disorders I experienced, or some of the fad diets I tried. There’s no judging here, I just hope that I’ve inspired to share your story with me, or other, or both! It’s time to move forward and end yo-yo living forever!!!
Chocolate Recover Shake
After you’ve done your actual cooldown, what is your post-workout routine?
For me, I like to make my Recover shake (cools me down, literally) while checking in here! Recover speeds muscle recovery, combats exercise-induced muscle soreness, reduces muscle breakdown, and improves your muscle strength recovery. The fact that it tastes like a Frosty is an added bonus 🤣 If you’re in a rush, you can just “shake” it up in your blender bottle that you got free with your order, but if you have 60 seconds, blending it is OH-SO-GOOOOOOD!!
Here’s my current go-to recipe to cool down post-workout!
Ingredients
1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or soy milk)
1 scoop Chocolate Recover (I use vegan formula so it’s dairy free)
½ large banana (for men, use 1 full banana post-workout)
1 cup frozen cauliflower
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
Combine almond milk, Recover, banana, cauliflower, and cinnamon in a blender; cover and blend until smooth. That’s so stinking easy, amiright??
Yield: 1 serving.
Portion Fix Containers: 1 Green, 1 Purple, 1 tsp (does not count as a Red if you drink it within 30 m minutes of exercise. any other time it is 1 Red)
2B Mindset: For more information on how to incorporate Beachbody Performance into 2B Mindset, see the “2B Mindset and Exercise” video in the 2B Mindset Program Materials section on BOD - incorporating Recover will vary based on the intensity of the program you’re doing!
Intensifying #mbf and #mbfa
If you’re like me, you’ve already completed a few round of #mbf (Muscle Burns Fat) and #mbfa (MBF Advanced) because they are so short (only 21 days each). It might be time to intensify things so you keep getting results and don’t plateau. Each time I repeat I try to perfect form and increase my weights, but here are a few other tricks too! Let me know which resonated with you the most!
Pause and Meditate
I’ll be honest, mediation can be easy for some, but it is Hard. As. Heck. for me. Which probably means I need to do it so desperately bad, amiright? It would be easier for me to spend 30 minutes doing Insanity Max 30 with Shaun T than it would to be quiet and at rest and meditate. So this channel was designed specifically with me in mind. Just kidding. But really, this is AN AMAZING resource being added to Beachbody on Demand at no additional cost, so take advantage of it as much as you can! Right now, the whole world is quite a stressful place. Elections are coming, rioting and racism is happening (how is this even possible), Covid is not going away no matter how much we hate it and try to obey the rules; now more than ever, we all need a healthy way to relax, unwind, and reduce anxiety.
Growing research shows that meditation has a powerful impact on our well-being and is proven to help de-stress, decrease anxiety, promote positive physical and emotional health, improve sleep (fall asleep faster and sleep longer), improve sex-life, renew your energy, reduce negativity, and enhance your self-esteem, focus, inspiration and empowerment. All of these things = increased quality of life; that’s our goal right? None of those sound bad to me, so why is this so hard????
Meditation can help you:
Build skills to manage stress
Gain a new perspective on stressful situations
Increase self-awareness
Focus on the present
Reduce negative emotions
Increase imagination and creativity
There’s an entire channel dedicated to this (must be kind of important) including:
4 meditations from the Beachbody Yoga Studio (most under 10 minutes) perfect for first thing in the morning, or last thing at night;
13 Themed Meditations from the Unplug app;
60 meditations from Elise Joan based on her “I AM” cards from Barre Blend (let me know if you don’t have these);
A 21-day guided program called Unstress: 21-Days of Meditation for Relaxation, Calm, and Less Anxiety, produced in partnership with the premier meditation app, Unplug, coming soon.
11 workout hacks --> get out of bed and get shit done!
1) Get enough sleep - sounds so easy right? Who doesn’t love sleep, but this is a major issue for most of my clients whether they’re up through the night with little ones, awake from drinking caffeine too late in the day, or wine disrupting their REM sleep. 7-9 hours is the suggested length of deep sleep and the best ways to get this are:
a) make the room as dark as possible - I love black out blinds,
b) use a white noise machine (this is my FAVORITE and under 70 decibels), a sound machine, or white noise app on your phone. The differences are: White Noise Machines offer a steady sound, simulating a fan, it’s doesn’t have a repeating pattern so your brain doesn’t get trained to listen for it, which is stimulating for some. A Sound Machine will have an “ocean”, “outdoor sounds”, “wind”, “babbling brook,” “white noise,” etc and they are usually repeating patterns. Honestly the crickets make me feel like there are things in my bed and the babbling brook makes me want to pee, so neither make me drift off to sleep, LOL, but the kids seem to like them and it works.
c) invest in soft sheets, these sheets on Amazon are my favorite, I have 4 sets.
d) keep the room temperature between 60-67 degrees,
e) drink a warm cup of tea when you start winding down, but make sure it’s herbal, not green or black tea, as those have caffeine and produce the opposite effect,
f) you’ve heard this one a million times, but I’ll remind you again, limit screen time. It stimulates your brain and eyes and sends you to bed with lots of thoughts swirling around and lastly,
g) journal things you're thinking about. When I have a lot of things to do the next day, I worry I’ll forget and it keeps me up thinking / stressing about it. If I make a list of everything I need to do / am thinking about, I’m able to put it at rest and fall asleep much faster.
2) Lay out exercise clothes the night before - I especially do this when I travel because it’s very easy to wake up on vacation and talk yourself out of it. But if everything is ready and staring me in the face, I remember I had intentions of getting moving and I’ll be thankful later. I’m 99% more likely to follow through with my workout plans. Some even wear them to bed, I might have done that before, just make sure if you do this, that your workout bra doesn’t have underwire in it.
3) Put alarm out of reach - the snooze button can be the devil and ruin your day. I never would have believed it till I listened to this podcast on the snooze button by Mel Robbins. Check it out and you’l be moving that alarm clock tomorrow :)
4) Schedule coffee maker to go off at a certain time - the smell wafting from your kitchen will give you just another incentive to get up and crush your workout and it’s been proven that small doses of caffeine on an empty stomach can help you push harder, thus get more, out of your workout,
5) Let the light in - expose yourself to natural light as soon as you wake up. Getting blue light from the sun turns off your brain’s melatonin faucet, which in turn can erase any morning fog you feel and give you energy to get going,
6) Sniff Peppermint oil - a small study found that drinking 500 ml of mineral water spiked with peppermint oil improved power and performance and lengthened the time to exhaustion. Young Living oils are the only oils approved by FDAA for consumption.
7) Fuel up / don’t sit down - chose a bite to eat that’s carb-focused and 100-150 calories. ½ banana and peanut butter or Shakeology stirred with water (as a bowl) are my two favorites, both with 16-20 carbs quickly available for your workout.
8) Drink up - dehydration can have a huge effect on physical performance since you lose ~ one liter of water during your sleep through sweat and breathing. I have a lot of ideas for ways to flavor your water without adding extra calories, so try to drink 16 oz. water when you first wake,
9) Stay accountable with a group - telling yourself you can’t work out is easy to do; making that excuse to someone else is a whole other story. studies have shown those that check-in with an accountability group are 20% more likely to succeed and get better results than those that go at it alone. I offer BOD Groups every single month and you’re always invited to join so make that commitment to show up every day and let do this together,
10) Download a new playlist - create a “wake-up” list of energizing songs to get you motivated to move. Research shows that music can reduce the perception of effort and increase endurance up to 15%! Beachbody Super Trainers shared their favorite playlists if you need some new ideas; now go crush that workout,
11) Workout @ home - you’re more likely to workout when your living room, playroom, study is your workout space and you walk by it and hear it call your name. You’ll save money, miss out on germs and save the commute time so there’s really no reason you can’t fit it in. Beachbody on Demand has programs from 10 minutes up to 90 minutes so there are plenty of options to fit the time you have available.
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 7
As Shaun T says, you’re done, but you’re never finished - AMEN TO THAT!!! There are 365 days in the year, 52 weeks. This was only 6 of those 52, what will you do the other 45 weeks between now and Feb 25 2020?
In a lot of ways, your transformation is all about getting stronger, faster, and more able to KEEP GOING on your fitness & nutrition journey. What does that look like for you? Will you do another round of Transform :20 or fire up Beachbody On Demand to see what other programs peak your interest. Need some guidance? Reach out and I’ll help you pick, or we can create a hybrid together - this is my speciality!!
Now for the fun part!! Today it’s time to take our “after” pictures and take our new measurements. You’ve earned your progress and it’s recognize all your hard work! You can enter the Beachbody Challenge Contest, and you’ll not only have the chance to win big cash prizes, but you will even receive a free gift (while supplies last - 1 per year). Go to BeachbodyChallenge.com for details.
Don’t forget to film your final 1-minute challenge like you did way back in Week 1. The idea is to submit them side by side, so we can show off to each other how far we’ve come.
One final thing: THANK YOU. Thank you for joining me, supporting each other, motivating me on hard days, showing up for yourself every day and for not letting life get you down, or stop your progress. Life is busy, it’s surprising, but it’s ours and how we chose to live it out impacts our health, our mindset, and other’s health and mindset in our house. You can’t change other people or their habits, but you are in control of yours.
So, which program are you doing next? I can’t wait to hear below!!
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 6
You guys - don’t get emotional on me… unless you want to! Can you believe this is our last workout of Transform 20? Don’t go thinking because it’s “balanced” it’ll be too easy and you’re going to bypass this. NO YOU’RE NOT! This is Day 41: BALANCED and we didn’t come this far not to finish! Today we have 3 transformers left: Climb Push-Ups; Plank, OBL Trap; and Balanced Dips.
I know you’ve been working hard, but I really want you to think about today’s workout from a different angle—FUN. Every single step is built on 6 weeks of sheer willpower, determination, and commitment.
Do not forget - tomorrow is PICTURE and measurements DAY! Stay on point!
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 5
Today is going to be ah-mazing. It’s Day 40: CUT and SHAUN-A-THON. Guess what? You’re going to do THREE sets of 3 Transformers — yep, that’s not a typo and I’m equally as scared. haha The first set of 3 Transformers are: Over Step Jump, Hand Rel Push-Up, and Triangle. The next 3 are: Rapid Taps, Twist OBL Kicks, and Rocketman. The final 3 are: Parkour, TS Squat Reach, and Lunge Punch. Lets go all out and see if we can beat our previous 5 weeks of transformers. Today is IT!
Shaun T loves motivating others and giving the TOOLS needed to truly transform our body AND our mind. Even though this group will be ending soon, I hope you’ll stay committed to fitness and nutrition and keep going. Team Energize ALWAYS has some group going whether it’s 3-Day Refresh, 30 day, 60 day or 90 day challenge. Message me your goals and we will figure out together what suits you best! Do not slack on Shakeology, it’s not something you drink only on days you work out, or during challenge groups. There’s a reason there are 30 servings in each bag and these come monthly. You should be running out and stalking your mailman for your new bag. Or is that just me?!?!? haha
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 4
Do you see it? Can you taste it? It’s the finish line and we only have three more workouts till we are there!! THREE! How awesome is it that you’ve made it this far—and that we’ve all done it TOGETHER. Community and accountability are the perfect combo and when like minded women get together - we are unstoppable!
Day 39: POWERFUL. Your 3 Transformers are Parkour, TS Squat Reach, and Lunge Punch.
Today is a full checklist day. Did you…
Enjoy your Shakeology? If so, which flavor?
Eat according to your nutrition plan? If so, are you doing containers or 2B Mindset?
Take your Beachbody Performance supplements? If so, which ones? Energize and Recover are my must haves!
Track your workout AND your Transformers? Did you beat last week?
Give yourself 3 affirmations? If not, do it now. STOP EVERYTHING AND DO IT!!
Tomorrow is a SPECIAL TREAT. I can’t wait to let you know what’s going on, but trust me, you are going to LOVE it.
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 3
You ladies R O C K! We are on track to finish STRONGer and finish PROUDer than when we started and I couldn’t be more excited for your finish! This is Day 38: STRONGER, and I want you to really think back to the first day you did this workout. Do you feel stronger? Do you have more stamina? Are the moves easier? They might not be because as we’ve journeyed along they’ve actually gotten harder, so it’s ok if your answer is NO to any of those. We are just trying to be our best every day and forget about the rest! Share below the biggest changes you’ve noticed along the way. I’ve noticed more cleaning out in my muscles.
Your 3 Transformers are 90° Ab Trapper, Hover Ab Kicks, and Burpee Hop. Lets try to beat all 3!!!
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 2
try and motivate someone today! this is my hubby doing T20 (modifying without step) and he started on his own, 3 weeks behind me just because he was tired of watching and wanted his own story. Be that motivation for someone!
Today I want you to pull out your 6-Week Transformation Tracker and look at all those days where you showed up for yourself and didn’t give up, esp when you noted that you really didn’t feel like working out, or something negative happened and almost derailed your fitness time. I’m so proud of you for not letting that happen and telling those voices to SHHHHHH for at least 20 minutes!!
This is Day 37: FASTER. By now you should be going at max speed, which is much faster than when you started!. Move those feet, stay nimble, keep your eyes on your step, and be light on your toes and the balls of your feet, so you are safe with the landings. Your 3 Transformers are Over Top, X Jack; L Reach; and Ski Abs, In/Out.
Transform :20 | Week 6 | Day 1
I hope you’ve been checking in with Shaun T and the cast with the behind-the-scenes show “Transform Your Life with Shaun T”. Watching it has helped me stay focused and motivated, and I always know I’m going to head into my workout even more fired up and ready to go. It' also reminds me that although this journey is OURS as a group, it’s all about ME and my results, my nutrition, my willpower and my showing up every day because no one else can make that happen for me.
This is the last week so no holding back. No second chances :) First day’s workout—only 6 workouts and you are DONE with Transform :20.
Day 36: BURN. Your 3 Transformers are: Rapid Taps, Twist OBL Kicks, and Rocketman.
Check out a few of the ladies from our last T20 round…they crushed it. One saw major scale changes 7-8 bs in 6 weeks but not visible changes and the other didn’t see many changes on the scale, but clothes were much loser. Our bodies are all so different and transformations will happen at different times, different areas of our body, and with different effort. Don’t compare yourself because “comparison is the thief of joy” - CS Lewis. Ok, now lets press play!
Transform :20 | Week 5 | Day 7
Rest day or not, my food is still on plan.
It’s our LAST AND FINAL REST DAY!??!?! YOU GUYS, WE ARE DOING IT!
It’s been an incredible journey so far, BUT WE ARE NOT DONE YET. Spend today with loved ones, walking, worship, whatever lights your heart on fire and maybe stretch / roll it out so you’re ready for 7 more days of W O R K! You know our last week isn’t going to be easy - Shaun T doesn’t know easy :)
Often in challenge groups, I see people comparing their progress to someone else’s. Please don’t do that. Your metabolism, age, story, etc are not the same as anyone else!!! And everyone transforms at a different rate and in different ways. I might notice more change in my abs than legs, or visa versa and that’s based on my nutrition, exercise, bonus with weights (or not), etc. Just look in the mirror at the beautiful person staring back at you. T H A T is your only competition. And she’s simply beautiful and getting healthier by the day!
This is YOUR journey. And hopefully you’ve discovered that when you COMMIT to a program and believe in yourself, you can accomplish anything.
Transform :20 | Week 5 | Day 6
wearing my motivation today!
Final workout day of the week, and I am ready to CRUSH it. Day 34: BALANCED. Your 3 Transformers are Climb Push-Ups; Plank, OBL Trap; and Balanced Dips. As for me, my motivation for myself is “get on that step, and get it done.” The rest of the day will be about family and maybe a massage if there’s time, but I need to get this done for ME so I can give to the rest of the little, and big, people in my house who rely on me.
What are some of the words you use to motivate yourself? What else do you do for motivation?
Transform :20 | Week 5 | Day 5
Meal prep using some of the recipes from T20 nutrition guide
We’re finishing the week STRONG! It’s Day 33: CUT and I know you’re going to give Shaun T everything you’ve got.
What do you think about the recipes in the Beachbody Nutrition Guide? I’m totally addicted to the homemade applesauce (right bottom) and sweet potato hash (left bottom). My family loves both of these so I’ve literally made them every Sunday because they don’t last in our house but 3-4 days. You might think your kids won’t eat like this, but when only given healthy options, I found my kids adapted pretty quickly because they don’t love to starve. ha!
You also have Beachbody Blog with some amazing recipes, Shakeology tab on website with “recipes by flavor”, my nutrition tab on www.eatsweatpray.com and 2B Mindset recipe book that might have come with your order. I’m weary of sending you to Pinterest because you never know how knowledgeable the person is that wrote the recipe. I’ve seen “21 day fix approved” recipes that were full of brown sugar, white sugar and white flour. UMMMMM, NOOOOOOO! If you’re consistent with Shakeology, you should be getting my weekly menus which are new every time so no risk of getting bored here! https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/recipes
Once you’ve found the recipe you like, scroll to the bottom where it shows portion container count.Make it work for you if it’s over, or under, your container count. These recipes aren’t a catch-all for everyone, you need to tailor it. All should work with containers and 2B Mindset nutrition plans.